


Loving Liberation

by Asdrator



Category: Fire Emblem: Soen no Kiseki/Akatsuki no Megami | Fire Emblem Path of Radiance/Radiant Dawn
Genre: Drama, F/M, Fluff, Pining, Romance, background aran/laura and edward/leonardo, set shortly after the liberation of Daein
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-18
Updated: 2020-03-18
Packaged: 2021-02-28 22:47:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,438
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23204941
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Asdrator/pseuds/Asdrator
Summary: Pelleas, now King of Daein, is putting up a brave front, but seems to Micaiah to be exhausted by his responsibilities as king. Whether he can confess to her the true cause of his restlessness- his ever stronger feelings for her- remains to be seen.
Relationships: Micaiah/Pelleas (Fire Emblem)
Comments: 5
Kudos: 7





	Loving Liberation

“...Pelleas? King Pelleas?”

Pelleas jolted awake, seeing Micaiah standing before his throne with a concerned look on her face. He struggled to remember what she had been doing. Ah, yes, she had been presenting a report on the state of repairs of damage from the former Begnion occupation. How embarrassing that he had fallen asleep so easily in the middle of it. A blush spread across his face, and he dipped his head slightly to Micaiah. “My sincerest apologies, Micaiah, please continue.”

“I’m afraid that’s all there was to it.” Micaiah replied, shaking her head. “You didn’t miss anything too important, I assure you. Have you been getting enough sleep, King Pelleas?” He couldn’t quite manage to look her in the eyes as he mumbled out a ‘no’. Mumbling and avoiding eye contact was a sign that he was embarrassed and anxious, and she knew it, and he knew she knew it. 

“Come now, it’s nothing to be embarrassed about. Plenty of people don’t get as much sleep as they should.” Micaiah attempted to comfort him, though with little success. Unwilling to be dissuaded, Micaiah continued to try and restore his cheer. “For example, take Sothe. I don’t think he sleeps at all, the poor thing, or at least not while I sleep. He it’s too risky for me to be asleep and defenseless in the night.” Scratching the side of her head awkwardly, she continued after a moment. “The point is, it’s nothing to be ashamed about. We’re just worried for your health. Daein only has one king, after all.”

Only one king, certainly, but also a popular general who performed that king’s functions on his behalf far better than he ever could. Pelleas did not know whether it was gratitude or jealousy he felt, or some bizarre mixture of both. Putting on a sweet, but fake, smile, Pelleas finally forced himself to meet Micaiah’s eyes. “Thank you for your concern, Micaiah, but I’ll be okay. I’m just trying to get used to the role is all. You are dismissed.” For a moment, it looked as though Micaiah would object. However, she changed her mind, turning and leaving the room without a word.

While it was true he was trying to get used to the role of King of Daein, and that familiarization was part of his sleeplessness, it was not in truth all of it. There was another matter that kept him up at night, one that to Pelleas was far more complicated and frustrating. It was the matter of what his feelings were for a certain silver-haired maiden.  
—————————————————————-  
“Hello, Aran. Are you busy with something?”

Despite it being noon, the height of the day, a sleepy halberdier was resting peacefully in a chair in the library of Castle Daein, an open book in front of him. A quick glance at the book’s contents told Pelleas that it was full of dating advice, which Pelleas found strange for one as seemingly apathetic as Aran, but then it would explain how he fell asleep. Opening a single eye at his name being called, Aran opened the other and sat up straight upon realizing it was Pelleas, though a certain drowsiness stayed with him as usual. “Hello, King Pelleas. What can I do for you?” Aran yawned.

Pulling up a chair to the table, Pelleas sat opposite from Aran, a warm but obviously strained smile on his face. “Please, you can simply call me Pelleas. As for what you can do for me... I need your advice on something, Aran. It’s important, and it won’t take much of your time.”

Aran sighed in relief, causing Pelleas to raise an eyebrow. “I thought you were here to fire me for sleeping so much on the job. I’m so glad that isn’t the case.” Hearing this, Pelleas couldn’t help but laugh lightly, shaking his head as he did so.

“No, I wouldn’t fire you over that. You’ve done far too great a service to Daein for me to even consider getting rid of you, barring some unforgivable crime. You’ve more than earned some rest.” Pelleas assured him. Or at least, he hoped he had assured him. It was hard to tell with Aran, since he rarely had any expression showing anything besides bored disinterest. Clearing his throat, Pelleas continued. “What I came to ask you about was actually, uh, romantic advice, to be frank.”

That got a reaction out of Aran: mild surprise. The halberdier leaned forward, as if to keep their conversation private. “Why ask me then? Surely Tauroneo or Zihark know more about that than I do. They’ve both been in relationships before.”

Smiling sadly, Pelleas shook his head once more. “No, they won’t do. I’ll remind you that in both their cases their relationships ended tragically. I don’t think taking their advice on this subject would be the wisest course of action.”

Aran seemed to consider this. “Hn, true. Then, what about Leonardo or Fiona? They were raised as nobles, if it’s a noble girl you’re after surely they know more about what is involved in courting her than I do.” A moment of silence passed between them, an embarrassed blush forming on Pelleas’s cheeks, then Aran frowned. “It isn’t a noble girl, is it?” It was more statement than question.

Nevertheless, Pelleas answered. “No, it isn’t. At least, I don’t think she is. Also, Leonardo’s only into boys.” Edward, to be specific, but Pelleas didn’t need to reveal that much. “Oh, before you ask, I did consider Edward and Meg, but I’ve found neither of them are very big on thinking. Nolan means well, but I’ve found he’s never been very big on subtlety. Laura, bless her soul, can’t keep a secret to save her life.” To his surprise, Pelleas saw that Aran was nodding in agreement with this. “And Sothe... is out of the question. I can’t tell you why but... he is. So that leaves you.”

“So it does...” Aran responded, leaning back and stroking his chin thoughtfully. Finally, he stopped, and look at Pelleas seriously. “It’s Micaiah, isn’t it?” 

It took all Pelleas had to maintain his composure. “...How did you figure it out?” He finally asked, his tone clearly betraying his deep reluctance to acknowledge it.

“You made it easy. Your reasonings for not choosing others narrowed it down until it could really only be one woman.” Aran replied plainly. “That aside, if you really want my advice, just be direct with her about your feelings. It’s quite clear that she values honesty. She’s not the type to hold it against you if she’s not interested, either, so stay calm and don’t worry too much about it. Er, not that I think she’ll reject you, of course.” He added the last part as he hastily moved to close the book in front of him and move it under his seat. It was only then that Pelleas remembered its contents.

“That book... are you planning to ask out Laura?” Pelleas asked sincerely. A flash of fear crossed Aran’s face, shortly followed by burning embarrassment, which were two emotions Pelleas had never seen on Aran’s face before. “With all due respect, Pelleas, it’s none of your business.”

“Aha, please forgive me Aran. It was not my intention to-“

“Please leave and let me suffer in peace.”

“V-very well. Have a good day...”  
—————————————————————  
It was in the afternoon that Pelleas found himself in front of Micaiah’s door, a bouquet of flowers in hand, trying to stop his knees from shaking. Taking deep breaths, he managed to calm himself down, reminding himself again and again of Aran’s words. He needed to be calm and honest, the first of which didn’t come naturally to him, and the second of which came too naturally to him. It was now that Pelleas realized that he would probably screw everything up if he tried this. Better to never try and simply pine from afar the rest of his-

Despite himself, Pelleas knocked on the door, as if compelled by the fear of such an ending. Micaiah arrived at it in short order and opened it, looking as radiant as she always did. Doing his very best not to appear nervous, without much success, Pelleas presented her with the bouquet, his head bowed. “W-would you go out with me, Micaiah?” He stammered, fearing the worst. 

Micaiah appeared at first surprised, then touched. “I thought you’d never ask, Pelleas.” She took the bouquet and kissed him gently on the chin.

It was then that Pelleas realized just how fully he loved Micaiah.

How, if necessary, he was willing to die for her.


End file.
